Endert was describing the night of Dec. 20, when a Coast Guard boat stuck a civilian pleasure craft during the San Diego Bay Parade of Lights, killing 8-year-old Anthony DeWeese and injuring five other people.

Endert, a boater that night, was the first witness to testify in a military preliminary hearing Tuesday in Alameda. Three San Diego Coast Guard petty officers face criminal charges for their actions in the 33-foot patrol vessel that hit the DeWeese family boat five days before Christmas.

In the courtroom, Anthony’s mother, Caroline DeWeese, wept quietly as Endert recounted how he heard a woman screaming that she couldn’t find her child and saw debris floating in the water.

About 150 feet away when the collision happened, Endert, a sailboat enthusiast, said the Coast Guard boat appeared to be going 25 to 30 knots just before the crash. He noticed the vessel, he said, because every other boat on the crowded bay was moving slowly.

“I thought it was a little dangerous, a boat at that speed with so many people around,” Endert said.

The three young military boat crew members appeared publicly for the first time since being charged in July, in what officials say is an extremely rare case of Coast Guard personnel being pursued criminally for actions taken in the course of duty.

The boat’s driver that night, Petty Officer 3rd Class Paul A. Ramos, faces the top count of involuntary manslaughter. If convicted of all charges, he would serve 17 years in a military prison.

The highest-ranking person on the Coast Guard boat, reservist Petty Officer 2nd Class Ian M. Howell, is charged with negligent homicide and lesser counts. His maximum sentence would be 10 years. The third defendant, boat crewman Petty Officer 3rd Class Brittany N. Rasmussen, was also charged with negligent homicide and would serve 8 years if convicted.